BILLBOARD COUNTRY UPDATE AUGUST 7, 2014 | PAGE 3 OF 8 THE STARK REPORT PHYLLIS STARK
[email protected] After 27 Years, Country Remains Hooked On ‘Fishin’ In The Dark’ It’s a song that’s as much about seduction as it is about night fishing. Filled Referencing the song title and band in his own lyrics, Smith says, was “the with evocative imagery conjuring moonlight, lightning bugs and counting best way to sum up a country boy’s lifestyle in eight words.” He calls the original the stars, “Fishin’ in the Dark” has quietly become one of the most influen- “a timeless song” that has resonated with many people. Its message offered tial songs of the last quarter-plus century, having been referenced countless “such an original way of saying, ‘Hey, let’s go kill some time together.’ Nobody times in the lyrics of other country songs and covered by multiple artists. had ever heard it done that way,” adds Smith. “Things that are original, first Written by Jim Photoglo and Wendy Waldman, “Fishin’ in the Dark” of their kind, seem to be timeless, and that was definitely a first of its kind.” became the third No. 1 for the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in 1987 and hasn’t Photoglo, who just released his new album Halls of My Heart last month, left the airwaves since. The original version got 94 spins PHOTOGLO remembers writing the music for what became “Fishin’ ” at 47 reporting stations during the last tracking week at the Shoney’s Inn that was once located at the base of (July 28 to Aug.